The final five Making Places commissions have now been announced, following a second Open Call. They are: a collaborative planting project by Build Up for Chapel End; an immersive lighting installation by Insight Lighting for Larkswood; a typographic mural by Phillips Walmsley for Leyton, a language-themed mural by Eleanor Hill for Wood Street and a reinterpretation of the forest by HUT for Leytonstone. Read all about the projects here.
Making Places is a project where artists, architects and landscape designers are invited to deliver public realm improvement works in partnership with Waltham Forest Council, bringing one new project to every ward in response to local residents’ suggestions.
Until the 1980s, a high percentage of trained architects in London worked for Local Authorities and the design ambition of public bodies can be seen today in municipal buildings, parks and and infrastructure projects across London. This is no longer the case and as we look for examples of good quality municipal design in the city, we are more often than not drawn to historical precedents. One excellent example of which is the Grade II Walthamstow Town Hall and grounds (Philip Dalton Hepworth, 1941).
We are working with Waltham Forest Council on this project which, in a small but we hope, significant way, brings back design and artist-led approaches to improving the public realm of the borough through 20 new site-specific public improvement projects. Each project will take place at an ‘unloved’ site chosen in response to suggestions by local residents. These places include parks, street corners, forest schools, library gardens and other public spaces where long-term interventions will help support local communities’ engagement with the varied landscapes of the borough.
Successful proposals from artists, architects, and practitioners of all backgrounds will receive up to £40,000 for each site to develop and deliver their projects.
In February 2018, the first ten projects were announced, and you can find out more information about those sites here.